Because of the Baby(63)

Skye’s waking up.





He was in the middle of responding when he heard the garage door and slid out of bed. He met Lark just inside the door between the kitchen and the garage. Without a word, he threw his arms around her and spun her off her feet. Nicki frolicked around them, animated by their excitement.

“I just got your text,” he explained, setting her on her feet so he could frame her face with his hands and survey her expression. “How is she?”

“She only came to for a couple seconds, but it was fantastic. Her doctor told me she’ll go back and forth between conscious and unconscious for a while with the periods of consciousness growing with time.”

“This is fantastic news.” News he longed to be able to share with Jake. Not wanting to dampen Lark’s euphoria, Keaton pushed his annoyance aside. This was a time to celebrate. “Do they have any idea how long her recovery will take?”

Lark shook her head. “It’s too early to tell.” She leaned her head against his chest, wrapped her arms around his waist and squeezed tight. “It’s going to be all right.”

“I never doubted it.”

Keaton set his cheek against her soft hair and pushed his own news to the back of his mind. This was not the time to tell her about the documents he’d found in the wreckage of the town hall. And until his lawyer was able to verify their validity, there was no reason to stir up trouble. That was why he hadn’t told his mother. She’d feel obligated to tell her husband, and Keaton’s father would waste no time confronting Tyrone Taylor. Keaton wanted to handle the delicate situation with Lark before the news got to her father.

“Is it okay if I grab a couple hours of sleep? I wasn’t sure what your plans were this morning.”

“I’m supposed to be back at the town hall around nine. Do you want me to call my mom again and see if she can come by?”

“No. I’ll be fine with a quick nap. I’m used to sleeping when I can, so I’ll grab naps while Grace sleeps.”

With the way her eyes were sparkling, Keaton wondered if she’d sleep at all. “Are you sure you don’t want to go back to the hospital and sit with Skye after you get some sleep?”

“She’s in good hands and it will take a while before she’ll be coherent enough for conversation. I’ll go check on her tonight. If anything happens between now and then, the hospital will call me.”

“And you’ll call my mother?”

“Definitely.”

They grabbed a leisurely shower together and Keaton felt Lark’s muscles loosen beneath his hands. As tempted as he was by her soft murmurs of pleasure and the skimming of her palms over his own soapy flesh, Keaton tucked her into bed without exhausting her further. She was fast asleep before he dressed and left the room.

Grace lay awake in her crib, her eyes fixed on the mobile above her. Unlike her father, she tended to wake happy in the morning. Keaton recalled Jake dragging himself blurry-eyed to school every morning.

“Good morning, sunshine,” he crooned, lifting her into his arms. She blinked at him, her blue eyes not quite able to focus. “Your auntie Lark has come home with great news. Your mother has come out of her coma and she will be so excited to meet you.”

Keaton wondered how long before mother and child were reunited. He hoped for Grace’s sake it was soon. Although he and Lark had done a good job, Grace needed her mother. And her father.

As promised, Lark woke in two hours and took charge of Grace so Keaton could get back to the town hall. Between feeding, burping, changing and a stint in the infant gym, Grace was ready to go back to sleep.

Lark put the baby down, kissed Keaton on the chin and shuffled off to the bedroom once more. She was half-asleep; her extra-long shift and the excitement over her sister’s recovery had drained her. Keaton wanted to stay home and watch over both her and Grace. With Skye awakening from the coma, his time with the pair was growing short and he hated the empty hollow in his chest at the thought.

There was nothing he could do about losing Grace. She belonged with her mother. But preventing Lark from slipping from his life was something he could control. The previous day’s discovery gnawed at him. As close as he and Lark had grown these last several weeks, there was no question in his mind that the revelation of the misplaced bill of sale would put a strain on his relationship with Lark if she sided with her father on the issue.

He might just lose her forever.

Yet he owed it to his family to fight for the land the Taylor family currently claimed. They needed the lakes on the disputed property to keep their cattle fed. Because of the water, this area was abundant with grass. They could shift the herds until they could complete repairs on the damage the tornado had done to the system they used to irrigate their current pastures and buy more lightweight calves to increase their herd.